Animal Welfare Alliance of DeKalb Co.

01/26/2025

🔥We often get asked, why TNR and not catch and kill? We have shared an article below that may help us provide an answer. Catch and Kill tends to make a drop-in-the-bucket effect, sometimes at a higher cost and with legal implications of killing someone's animal. Cats each produce 100 cats and begin at 12 weeks old, which leaves thousands of cats still reproducing.
💯When done effectively, TNR reduces stray cat populations in the first year by 15%-60% and is a low-cost option. The cats left are vaccinated, and a community cat provider is assigned to ensure the animals are not going to areas or homes where they are not welcome, and that feeding times are controlled.
🎯Love or hate cats, with effectively done TNR everyone wins.

🐾If you are feeding it, fix it! If you are not in unincorporated DeKalb, where we serve our community, please schedule directly with a low-cost TNR veterinarian for those cats you are feeding.

Our goal is to make our communities healthier and happier for
humans and stop the breeding that causes the cats (and often humans) to suffer.

https://www.alleycat.org/resources/why-trap-neuter-return-feral-cats-the-case-for-tnr/ #:~:text=Grounded%20in%20science%2C%20TNR%20stops,is%20never%20ending%20and%20futile.

Send a message to learn more

01/21/2025

🙋‍♀️Love this shirt? It can be yours!

⚠️Like and follow our page, share this post, and tag a friend to be entered to win.

🎯The giveaway winner will be chosen this Friday, January 25th, 2025 by 9am.

🐈‍⬛We are entrusting Uncle Bably Billy, resident TNR cat to choose the random winner. The shirt is a size L, so we hope you can 'make it work', as they say in high fashion.

01/20/2025

This is your chance! Support a great cause, and get that sweet, sweet (harmless) vengeance!
Use the 'donate now' button on our FB page, or contact us directly to get your donation set!
Tax deductible! Named feral-ex cats will be posted on surgery day, February 10th 😀

01/19/2025

🛌 Bed down those barn/working TNR cats with STRAW!
Not, hay not blankets, those hold moisture and cold.

🥶 Ensure you are using a heated bucket or bowl for water,or breaking ice daily in water bowls.

😇 Keep yourselves safe too! Let's help each other, and animals that need us, during this upcoming winter chill.

01/17/2025

We cannot adopt away the animal over population issue.

01/17/2025

We love providing TNR help through traps, support, and transport for our non-incorporated Dekalb residents! We plan to keep working hard for you to combat the unowned breeding cat issue afflicting DeKalb County. We are currently at our max of 12 monthly for surgery transport for February and March. We will be scheduling into April soon. We are doing our best to help every resident that reaches out.

We do understand, that some residents may have more cats than we can take due to our limitations due to; budget, surgery schedule approvals, inability to wait for availability, or may not live in the scope of our service area.

We still have solutions for you! Below is the link directly to Humane Fort Wayne Communtiy Cat program. HFW services 14 area counties so they are here to help on a very large scale. If you cannot get to HFW, check with vets in your area that may work for you, if our terms at this time are not a fit for your needs.

So you’ve found your forever friend at Humane Fort Wayne. What’s next? Learn about our adoption process so you’re ready to take your new pet home.

01/16/2025

Party for Pawgress! Save the date.

We have an official fundraiser name!

01/16/2025

We have an official fundraiser name!

01/15/2025

Kokomo has great information! Unowned, free roaming cats can be EXTREMELY FRIENDLY, especially when in heat.
Kitten season is fast approaching. If cats have found their way to you and need spay or neuter, and our program does not assist in your community, we encourage you to find low cost surgery on your own at Humane Fort Wayne.

On our last transport, 9 of the 16 females were in heat. Many of the cats we have on the transports this month are also displaying in heat behaviors. Cat breeding season is in early spring and lasts through summer. In the northern hemisphere, this is usually from February to October. However, climate change and weather is causing mating seasons to start earlier and last longer.

According to studies, a vast majority of unspayed females were noted to begin heat cycles in early February. A cats pregnancy usually lasts around 65 days. If you have an unspayed cat and it’s over 4 months, you are at a high risk of your cat going into heat and getting pregnant very soon! Please spay her NOW!

Brace yourself animal welfare friends. In about two months we are all going to be drowning in a surplus of kittens and some folks are going to be calling us and scratching their heads because they are shocked their cat keeps getting pregnant. Sadly, many of you are going to have to make tough decisions and possibly have to start euthanizing for space. We are doing our best to keep that from happening but it’s a community effort!

Find low cost options here > https://www.kokomocommunitycats.org/resources

Find TNR resources by county here > https://www.kokomocommunitycats.org/indiana-tnr-resources

01/14/2025

Our February TNR surgery schedule with Humane Fort Wayne is full! 12 kitty cats on the books with loving CCPs to make this happen with us, thank you to all participating!

We are 50% full for March already!
Fill out the form linked below if you need help with unowned free-roaming cats in non-incorporated DeKalb. We are aware these cats are friendly and feral, ALL in need of spay and neuter.
https://www.awadekalbco.org/tnr-app
DeKalb
Our program has $2,000 that our County Commissioners
have graciously put forth to help residents with the unowned breeding cat crisis. We are charged a minimum of $50 a cat for surgery. Qualified residents may have 2 cats done free with Commisoner's dollars, and 2 additional cats for the $50 fee each.

If you have spay and neuter needs outside of our program's limitations, we encourage you to visit Humane Fort Wayne's website to check in on surgery options.

Trap-Neuter-Return Application

01/10/2025

Excellent and factual TNR info.

TRAP NEUTER RETURN- why is it important?

Female cat can breed as young as 5 months.
Average size litter is 4 kittens but as many as 8 have been documented at our clinics.
In Pennsylvania, the average number of litters is 2-3.
Female cats are at risk for pyometra which is a fatal infection of the uterus if untreated. The treatment? A spay.
Female cats who have not been spayed are at risk for mammary cancer and the best time to do it is before they enter their first heat cycle. So getting kittens fixed is important. Most clinics fix kittens as young as 3 months/3 lbs.
Female cats that have been spayed don't howl during their heat and disturb the neighborhood at night. Or attract toms that fight each other over females. Again causing disturbances during the night.

Male toms will travel great distances to find a mate.
Male toms get beaten up during fights over mates. Most wounds are around the neck area.
The urine of a neutered male cat minus testosterone is less offensive.
Older male cats and cats with undescended testicle/s (cryptorchid) are at greater risk of testicular cancer. Treatment? Neuter at a young age.

All TNR surgeries come with a rabies vaccine that protect the free roaming cats outside when encountering an animal with rabies. Please make sure that you keep paperwork for your cats so that you can show they've been vaccinated in case of an outbreak of rabies in your area.

TNR makes for healthier cats and happier communities. Don't wait! Get your appointments lined up!

Shelters and rescues are full. Kittens, Kittens. Kittens. And they come from outside cats. So please do your part to stem the flow of kittens. Trap Neuter Return

01/08/2025

❗️We have exciting news! We are booking the Hubie Ashcraft Band for our 1st ever fundraiser! Saturday, June 27th. 2026.❗️
More details to come, but this was too big not to let the cat out of the bag! We will seek sponsors soon; you don't want to miss out on this event.
⬇️Location, TBA so if you have suggestions, drop them in the comments below.

Send a message to learn more

01/07/2025

We love to see this partnership! ❤️

01/05/2025

🐾We finished the year with 60 completed TNR surgeries from our start in August to December 24! That's over 6,000 unwanted kitten births prevented. We ensured each TNR cat in our program had a CCP with food and shelter.
🐈‍⬛We also returned to owner; 1 stray cow and her dog pal, 2 domesticated ducks, 12 foster kittens for home placement 5 adult female foster dogs and their 42 puppies in our care this year in our care with HFW adoptions as outcomes. We also sent 3 baby opossum to wildlife rehab that lost their mother.
🤝Thanks to all that participated, donated and volunteered in our program to help families providing care to unowned cats and curb the exploding unowned cat population in our County. We partnered with local law enforcement, communities and schools to educate and help with spay and neuter processes and we even drafted local ordinances. We did a great interview with Best Friends Animal magazine too!
🐎 We had 6 senior equine full time residents. Sadly, Toby passed away at 44 and Blaze at 36 this year, peacefully and surroundedby love. 4 rescue horses are still permanent residents with us at ages; 30, 26, 19 and 16.
🪽 We began a veterinary fund for those in need this year also, the Duchess fund.
🐈We are awaiting surgery dates with Humane Fort Wayne for 2025 and encourage you to apply if you are an unincorporated DeKalb resident in need of help. Application linked below.

Trap-Neuter-Return Application

12/29/2024

‼️If you have asked for TNR surgery for 2025 with our program, we ask that you please fill out the online form below, in the link. ‼️ This form is required for surgery in 2025 with us.
https://www.awadekalbco.org/tnr-app

If you have an interest in TNR for 2025 but have not already contacted us, please also fill out the form. We will announce surgery dates and transport details as soon as we have them from our amazing friends at Humane Fort Wayne.

🎉We wish you all a happy new year! Consider spaying it forward by donating to the TNR fund for unincorporated Dekalb in 2025.

Trap-Neuter-Return Application

12/20/2024

Resident TNR cat Uncle Baby Billy, and all of us at AWA wish you all the best holiday season.

We will be in touch with anyone that requested winter 2025 surgery for details in January, as our surgery schedule has changed, so hang tight and enjoy the beautiful winter.